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Josh Peters · · 38 Comments
Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt Whisky is a combination of 3 different Speyside whiskies mixed together in small 27 barrel batches. The bottle I’m reviewing comes from batch 27 and I won’t lie, there is a part of me that finds extreme satisfaction in that symmetry. Made from a combination of Glenfiddich, Balvenie and Kininvie this silky smooth and fruity sweet whisky comes with a sidecar of history.
For more information on the whisky named after a work-related repetitive stress injury we turn to the bottle at hand which states: “The skill of the malt man is demonstrated when he turns the malting barley with a shiel (wooden shovel). Years ago some malt men used to develop a temporary strain known as Monkey Shoulder, but working practices have changed and thankfully the condition no longer exists… Inspired by their craft, we’ve created Monkey Shoulder…” Painful sounding condition, but a darn tasty whisky.
Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt Whisky Info
Region: Speyside, Scotland
Producer: William Grant & Sons Ltd.
Mashbill: 100% malted barley (blend of Glenfiddich, Balvenie and Kininvie)
Age: NAS
ABV: 43%
Batch: 27
Price: $30
Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt Whisky Review
EYE
Tamarin gold
NOSE
Big complex orchard and tropical fruit followed by malty sweetness, red licorice a bit of spice and caramel. The fruit is fantastic, but beyond the rich fruit notes things get a bit light.
PALATE
Same complex fruit, malt, licorice and spice from the nose but the flavor brings in some additional notes of cream soda, juicy fruit gum and some grassy undertones. It’s still not a deep “thinkin’ whisky”, but good golly is it tasty.
FINISH
Medium length and fruity with notes of grassy malt and earth.
BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Excellent balance with what’s there, medium body and a smooth, almost oily, texture.
OVERALL
Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt Whisky has a rich fruity character that’s well balanced and comes across the senses pleasantly, but kind of ends there. It’s kind of like that friend who doesn’t say much but is always polite and everyone likes him. This is batch 27 and since they bottle such small batches (27 barrels per batch) there’s likely several different batches on the shelves right now so take that into consideration if you pick up a bottle, but if the other batches are anything like this one they’re a good buy.
EDIT: Per a quote from DrinkHacker the Batch 27 thing is just for decoration. Thanks to Abe for pointing that out.
‘Batch 27 refers to the original Monkey Shoulder batch which was 27 casks vatted together. The original vatting was made from our three distilleries we have on our site in Dufftown… Kininvie, Glenfiddich & The Balvenie (sometimes affectionately known as the KGB).
Because Brian Kinsman can’t possibly batch it in those numbers anymore we line up runs of 27 at a time for vatting. Occasionally using other distilleries in the mix, but always three Speyside distilleries and always in first fill American oak (i.e. first time they’ve been used in Scotland).’”
SCORE: 86/100
Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt Whisky Review - Score Breakdown
Value
$30 bucks for a well balanced blend of Glenfiddich,BalvenieandKininvie? Yes please.Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt Whiskyis definitely a good value.
Overall
86
- Nose - 85
- Palate - 86
- Finish - 85
- Balance, Body & Feel - 88
Sending
User Review
3.03 (184 votes)
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38 Comments
Pyrrhus November 10, 2021
I finally got a bottle of this, mainly for a penicillin but I look forward to tasting it on it’s own before I shake it up in a co*cktail. I also got a bottle of Johnnie Walker Double Black but that’s because once it starts to get colder in my area I prefer a nice Islay and the price point of most of my old faithful’s keep rising.
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Josh Peters November 11, 2021
Nice, nothing like a good Penicillin. I like the JWDB, it’s not a bad whisky. Though I haven’t seen it around here for years. Only the regular black :/
Cheers Pyrrhus!Reply
David Badner September 23, 2020
Love Monkey Shoulder! It is one of my favorite blends. Had you given it a bad review, I would have stopped reading!
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Josh Peters September 23, 2020
Haha, good to know ;) I’m looking forward to finding the smoky one at some point to give it a try. Have you had it?
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Caymus January 28, 2020
This was my gateway scotch. I am really into wine, then got into bourbons a few years ago, and now scotches too. It’s a great introductory scotch, yet one that I will always have on hand. Its a great value anywhere you find it, but today I picked up a bottle at Costco for $23.99 !! That’s crazy !
Keep up the great work Josh. I read a lot of bourbon and whiskey review sites, but you’re my go-to online review. And I love Ralfy too for his videos.Reply
Josh Peters January 31, 2020
Hey Caymus,
Thank you and thanks for sharing. Love reading about other folks whiskey journeys!
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Joel June 18, 2019
I wasn’t a fan of this one at all. I got my bottle for free from a friend, and that’s about the right price point for it. It’s quite harsh for a 43% whisky and it tastes mediocre at best. They also charge $65 for it here in Ontario, Canada, which is hilarious. There are easily 30 whiskies I’d buy at that price point or lower before giving anyone a single dollar for Monkey Shoulder. To each their own.
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Dan December 10, 2018
(5)
I bought a bottle of this for a friend’s birthday based solely on reviews and, after trying it, bought myself one the next day. This has quickly turned into my favorite scotch.
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Josh Peters December 12, 2018
Nice, glad you liked it Dan! Cheers!
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JohnT October 11, 2018
How does this compare with Pinch Bottle Scotch? Are they both non-peated whiskys? I’m doing a little exploring.
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Josh Peters October 22, 2018
I like it more than Pinch. Pinch has a more grainy caramel syrup thing going on vs Monkey Shoulder’s fruity essence. Cheers!
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JohnT October 27, 2018
Looks like I’ll drop the Pinch from the shopping list and keep Monkey Shoulder for a change of pace. Thanks for the guidance! Always appreciate your experience.
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Josh Peters November 18, 2018
Cheers John!
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BigCheese July 13, 2018
Finally picked up a bottle this morning (yes,I am an early riser!) and it was the last one on the shelf! It’s pretty damn good for $27 bucks ($30.51 after taxes). Decent nose, nice legs, tastes excellent considering the price. The finish is decent also, I’d say it’s just about medium also. I’m not sure if I would pay the extra ten bucks for Old Pulteney (good stuff for the price) or just go with this instead? I guess I won’t know until I finish the bottle. Whisky often changes in taste as the bottle is depleted, it usually gets better. Anther reason to love Scotch. I’d recommend it for anyone delving into Scotch for the first time, you won’t be disappointed.
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Josh Peters July 16, 2018
Cheers to early risers :) Thanks for sharing!
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Bruce December 21, 2017
A buddy of mine just gave me a bottle of this for Christmas. I’m a bourbon man, do you think I’ll like this?
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Josh Peters December 27, 2017
VERY different. Only one way to know… try it! Cheers :)
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KEVIN MILLER September 24, 2017
The guy at my local liquor store has been talking me up on Monkey Shoulder for a while and I finally bought a bottle this week. I am normally an Islay guy but this is not bad for the price, that being said for a relatively “cheap” scotch I would still prefer Speyburn 10 as it has a much smoother finish.
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Josh Peters September 30, 2017
Both are pretty good, but I think I’d prefer the Monkey Shoulder for my own tastes. Cheer Kevin!
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Freddy February 19, 2017
I always have a bottle of this in the house for when I want to have a good quality whisky with a cigar…It has a unusually sweet palate, and finish (I was thinking something along the lines of a peach – however you might be right with the cream soda, and juicy fruit gum analogy).
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Ben Danner January 29, 2016
I’m a bourbon drinker who’s trying his best to get into scotch. I didn’t want to jump headlong into a high priced bottle and be overwhelmed. I’m trying a gradual progression to more advanced, complex scotches. So far I’ve tried Johnny Walker Red (yuck), Dewar’s White Label and Famous Grouse (not bad), Dewar’s Scratched Cask (very good) and Now the Monkey Shoulder (excellent). What do you suggest for my step? My goal is to eventually be cool enough to sit in front of a fire with Nick Offerman sipping Lagavulin.
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Ben Danner January 29, 2016
That should read “What do you suggest for my NEXT step?”
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Josh Peters January 30, 2016
Ha, I hope to be that cool one day too! Have you tried Cutty Sark Prohibition, Black Grouse, Isle of Skye 8 or Bank Note? All decent blends like what you mentioned above and the Black Grouse and Isle of Skye are smoky and will get you moving towards that Lagavulin!
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Ben Danner February 1, 2016
Thanks for the input!I’ve picked up the Prohibition a time or two…it’s squarely in my price range. The Black Grouse is also on my wish list since I enjoyed the Famous Grouse.
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Josh Peters February 1, 2016
Nice, hope you enjoy them!
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Erich Shea February 12, 2016
You might try the original Glenmorangie as well. It’s economical but very good quality.
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KEVIN MILLER August 5, 2017
When you are ready to get into Islay Scotch I would recommend Ardbeg 10 and Laphroaig Quarter Cask.
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teuchy January 15, 2019
I’m guessing you’re not a Scotch beginner any more, but just in case….I often recommend Old Pulteney. It seems to have gone up a bit in price recently but you can get it in the US for less than $40, which is a fantastic price for a quality single malt.
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Andy S. January 8, 2016
Just picked up my first bottle of Monkey Shoulder over the holidays, looking for something new to try at my in-laws for a week without breaking the bank ($32 at the local grocery store). Thoroughly impressed! Tasty and smooth. Everyone who tried it figured it was a $50+ bottle. Already bought a bottle for my house. Thanks for the great review.
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Josh Peters January 12, 2016
That’s awesome, cheers man!
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Abe July 10, 2015
From what I understand, every batch is “Batch 27” and references the number of barrels they use for each vatting.
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Abe July 10, 2015
Doing a bit more research, I found this quote from DrinkHacker – “Brand Ambassador Freddy May clears up some of the info about Monkey Shoulder’s heritage and production in this email:
‘Batch 27 refers to the original Monkey Shoulder batch which was 27 casks vatted together. The original vatting was made from our three distilleries we have on our site in Dufftown… Kininvie, Glenfiddich & The Balvenie (sometimes affectionately known as the KGB).
Because Brian Kinsman can’t possibly batch it in those numbers anymore we line up runs of 27 at a time for vatting. Occasionally using other distilleries in the mix, but always three Speyside distilleries and always in first fill American oak (i.e. first time they’ve been used in Scotland).'”
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Josh Peters July 14, 2015
Been updated. Thanks
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Josh Peters July 14, 2015
I’ve been pointed to a couple other reviews where they mention that too. If I can get a contact there and get an answer I’ll definitely post it.
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CK July 10, 2015
I am interested in your comment about the batch number. I have read elsewhere that the batch number on the label is a bit deceptive, as it is not produced in actually distinct “batches,” and the “27” has been used from day one. Any idea which story line is correct?
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Josh Peters July 14, 2015
After I posted this review I had a couple people ask the same thing and I started digging deeper and finding people saying the same thing. I’m going to see if I can get a contact there, but it very well could be bullsh*t and if I can get an answer I’ll be sure to post it.
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moretears July 8, 2015
Ralfy rolled his eyes at this in one of his YouTube videos, perhaps without ever tasting it. Just the idea of a whisky named after a repetitive stress injury bugged him.
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Josh Peters July 14, 2015
Haha, it’s always funny to see what bugs him about whisky. He’s always entertaining.
Cheers!
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